Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's discus throw

Did You Know?

• The two-round format with a divided final has been used since 1936.
• The qualifying round gives each competitor three throws; if fewer than 12 men achieve the qualifying distance, the top 12 advance.
• In the final, the top eight throwers receive an additional three throws for a total of six, with the best throw counting.

Summary

Matthew Denny opened with a 65.76 metres lead in the first round. Lukas Weißhaidinger, who nearly fouled out of qualifying, took the lead in the second round with 66.65 metres. Simon Pettersson followed closely with 66.58 metres, then Daniel Ståhl launched his winning throw, his only throw good enough to win. Weißhaidinger improved to 67.07 metres in the third round, but Pettersson's fifth-round 67.39 metres held for silver. Denny threw a personal best 67.02 metres in the final round but missed the podium. The result gave Sweden its first 1–2 finish in the discus and its only medals in the event since Ricky Bruch's 1972 bronze.

Qualification

The qualifying period originally ran from 1 May 2019 to 29 June 2020, but was suspended from 6 April 2020 to 30 November 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the end date extended to 29 June 2021. The world rankings period start date was changed to 30 June 2020; athletes who had met the standard during the earlier period remained qualified, but those using rankings could not count performances from the suspended period. Qualifying standards could be obtained at approved meets, including indoor events, and the most recent Area Championships could be counted even if outside the qualifying period. NOCs could also use a universality place to enter one male athlete if they had no male athletes meeting the entry standard. The entry cap was 32 athletes.